Preparation

Before Leaving the Country

CEA takes special steps to ensure students, their families and academic institutions are well-prepped for what to expect while studying abroad in a foreign country. While we do not wish to dissuade anyone from the tangible benefits of cultural immersion, we do hope you your students and their families are assured that CEA has taken the necessary steps to ensure your students' safety and well-being.

CEA Web Site, MyCEA Account and Site Specialists' Role

The CEA Web site provides an exhaustive list of Student Tips and Parent Tips online to help prepare students for a safe, healthy and valuable study abroad experience. Once students have applied, they are given access to a personal "My CEA Account," which outlines pre-departure requirements and recommendations to promote each student's health and safety abroad. These include:

completion of online CEA Medical Questionnaire

links to U.S. Consulate, Department of State and Center for Disease Control to obtain the latest travel information and requirements

discussions to have with their primary health provider during their appointment

packing considerations for prescriptions medications and passport.

CEA Site Specialists in Phoenix, Arizona, are available to review medical questionnaires and provide support to students and parents who have questions about special accommodations and/or medical or psychological services that may be needed during the program abroad. Pre-departure orientation sessions review the CEA Student Handbook and provide all contact information for CEA staff abroad in the host city.

Before Students Go Abroad

CEA takes the necessary and recommended step of registering all students with the U.S. Department of State's embassy or consulate in the host city. The U.S. Department of State provides Americans with information about travel to specific countries, as well as travel warnings and alerts.

Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department recommends Americans not travel to a country because of civil unrest, dangerous conditions, terrorist activity or because the U.S. government does not have diplomatic relations with the country, which may hinder its helping Americans in an emergency. Travel Alerts are issued as a means to disseminate information quickly for relatively short-term or transnational conditions that could pose significant risks to American travelers. CEA executive team members continually monitor and evaluate all travel communications from the U.S. Department of State.

Additional information is available on countries, including facts on the land, people, history, government, political conditions, economy, and relations with other countries, with U.S. diplomatic ties online.

How to Obtain/Replace Passport

We encourage students to apply for and obtain their passport as early as possible. Students should expect at least 4-6 weeks for applications to be processed. Information on required identification for obtaining a passport is available online with the U.S. Department of State.

If your student loses his or her passport, or if it is stolen while overseas, the student should contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate as soon as possible.

Leave behind all valuables – irreplaceable family objects; unnecessary credit cards, social security card, library card and similar items from their wallet

Students should make two copies of their itinerary, along with their passport, identification, numbers from travelers checks, credit cards, airline tickets. They should leave one copy with a family member and carry the other copy with them abroad in case of loss or theft.

We encourage student to plan for the unexpected. Their program may be for eight weeks, but students should plan for the unforeseen and take enough money and medication in case of an extended stay.